The Big Ten has gone on an expansion spree over the last couple of years, adding UCLA and USC last offseason and bringing Oregon and Washington on just over a year later.
The Big Ten has 18 teams scheduled to be members starting next year, and nobody would be surprised if more programs joined the conference before all the dust settles on this college football extreme makeover.
But the four teams talked about the most on the West Coast out of the Pac-12 are the four teams that ended up singing kumbaya with the fine folks in the middle of the country (oh, and Rutgers and Maryland). So, this is now a moving target if the league were to add a couple of more to make it an even 20. Still, would anyone be surprised?
Before we throw caution to the wind, let’s first understand what the Big Ten’s position on all of this has been.
- It has to be a culture fit, and that means it would be really helpful if a program were an AAU member. Basically, that means academically, a program would need to be a certified research institution. Every single Big Ten program aside from Nebraska is an AAU member (including those from the West Coast). Nebraska was one when it joined the league. We have a list of those institutions here if you are interested.
- The Big Ten will not expand for sake of conference imperialism, but if there’s an opportunity to grab a market it isn’t in, the league will listen — and act.
- Notre Dame would be an exception to anything else out there. The Irish have so far given a super-wedgie to the Big Ten, but the conference would listen if there was a change of heart.
Here’s a look at the 10 programs most likely to enter the game of conference expansion musical chairs if the Big Ten were to add a couple of more. We go from least likely to most — of course, all in our opinion.
And while we’re at it, if you want another perspective on teams that could be ripe for more Big Ten expansion, check out our friends at Rutgers Wire.